AHMEDABAD: For almost 120 years, this 'civil dispute' was a closely guarded family secret of the erstwhile royals of Bhavnagar.
As the country gets ready to celebrate Mahatma Gandhi's 143rd birth anniversary on Tuesday, scions of the family have unraveled a precious gem of history.
They say Gandhiji's first case in India after returning from London as a law graduate in July 1891 was their property dispute.

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The royals have resurrected case papers from the erstwhile Kathiawar court, which reveal that Gandhiji had won the civil case for his client Lord Harisinhji Roopsinh Raol.
The case papers are well preserved with Harisinhji's descendants Dr Chhatrapalsinhji Raol, a pediatrician in Bhavnagar. Gandhiji had fought the case for the family in May 1892 and was paid Rs 300 as fee.
"It was a case on the ownership of four Bhavnagar villages among family members. The diwan of Bhavnagar state had caused much confusion while allotting properties. We had nothing against the maharaja. Gandhiji had suggested that since it was matter of the state and the prevailing British government, the maharaja had to be made party. With a lot of hesitation this was done," says Siddhrajsinh Raol, one of the family members.
The order in the case was passed on July 16, 1892. Gandhiji won the case and the allotment process was resolved, but the case papers were sealed, never to be made public.
"Since there was no dispute in the real sense, we thought it prudent to keep the issue under wraps. The legal suit was necessary because of the diwan's goof-up and we were also forced to file a case owing to prevalent British laws," says Raol.
Gandhiji had struggled to get a case and start his practice for almost a year. He had an office in Mumbai and had registered with the Bombay high court in November 1891. Later, he had returned to Rajkot to stay with his brother Laxmidas.
On May 14, 1892, he had got registered with Kathiawar agency courts.
A gazette notification had been issued to formalize his registration. It was at this juncture that Harisinhji approached him.
Laxmidas had advised him to stay in touch with the Bhavnagar royals to ensure a steady flow of cases